Apparatus for forming irrigation mounds



Dec.7, 1948. G. c. DEAKINS; 2,455,555

APPARATUS FOR FORMING IRRIGATION MOUNDS Filed July 28, 1944 2 Shets-Sheet 1 f/wewroe GROVE}? C. UAW/(1N5 Fox? THE FI'RM Arm/ways 7,1948. v I G; c. DEAKINS 2,455,566

APPARATUS FOR FORMING IRRIGATION MOUNDS Filed July 28, 1944 Y 2 Sheets- -Sheet 2 ivve/vrae By 620 v2? C DEA/m6 fine THE FI'RM Arne/firs Patented Dec. 7, 1948 eme memmos a t ines-so OFFICE Calif.

t 4 Claims.

invention relates "to devicesfor forming earthen mounds or ridges, and is 'especiaiiyaprilifcable iorj ringing orchards and fields in preparation for controlling irrigationoperations.

I n districtswhere orchards require periotlicirrigation, it is "frequentlyy'a practice to-construct relatively shallow dikes or ridges around the trees. A common practice for "irrigating some types of trees is to provide'basins aboutthe trees into which irrigation .wateris run until the basins are filled. It is also sometimes necessaryto form ditches to :supply .the irrigation water to the basins abouttheI-trees, In.';suoh.,ridg'in g tions, Fa common. practice is "to employ frequently Known as tfridgers which are Lirom'onetside tofan orchard! othe oth r .to like rcontinuous ridges, After completing tridging fin one, iir,eotion, "the :ridging v devices .are then .izun transversely to the i-ridges first constructed,

whereby ridges are formed about four lsides of tea-entree. Howeverin constructing the transverse wing-es, 'theewalls of: :the ridges originally constructed are partly broken down lthe lpassage; of; T131146 iridging equipment across them when the transverse vridges are. being formed. or ,ider to :fii-l :thergaps where ridges are brolsent "own by oross-ridging, auxiliary devices, whiohtam commonly known as ibloclgersfw-have ;been .emploxed whichware set across the line 1 of travel and im'ove dirt ato the gaps, these blockers rthen being released by :manually controlled means @to; .leave a quantity of earthin the gaps \andihereby re- 15130138 :the original ridge construction. HoWever, wthge manual operation of :-the means, for controlling blocking becomes :itdifllls where [a vlargeeon chard islbeing'ridgedwto formtbasins around trees. Alt :is Fthe rprincipalwobjeot of "the jPliBSeI-lt :invenfition to, provide zfor1automaticvactuation or gt he blockingadevicesh v 1 1 1 itais. aifurthertobject of the inventiomtb'meiy upon the contourroif {the earthionsuchxeutomatic rbonltroltofthe blocking imeansnand 'ituis arsiiecific zobjectzto :provide meansxadapted to f-be lifted :by nprfeiiiouslyiformed ridges "701 mounds-asttheblocking imeans xabproaches gaps in gsuc'h "ridges tor moundsgwhereby L120 deposittearthrbeing mbvediby said blockers :into gapszat crossingiloeeitions. i i

It use 'iparticular ifeature of the iinvention :to employ trip means whiehmormally Ehold tithe i blocking meansrin :operative lpositionzandfi move the? trip means to and pfrom holdingwposition -throushfthefinfiuencefor means which follows vthe oontourhof :zpreviousiwrormedicross neg-es; *0-

it oming ith one embodiment of whe' mventionne M ii the 'eontour renewing means 'rises overa W l "50 el tively it wide elonga ously formed cross ridge, the lblocking means 'JlS released and ri-sesto leave a quantity of earth which wasbeing pus'hedahead of it. -By reference to the accompanying drawings and rthe following desoriptionfiurtherobjects and "features ofthe"invention {will become apparent to those skilled in the art. In the drawings, whichgpresent certain embodiments of the invennee ofi-illustrativpurposes,

l fis 'ei plan flview of a conventional i idgr provided 'with"my improvement;

a side elevation offthe structure shown TigQZis it s .Fig. Bfis a II'O Shown inFiglll;

LF'ig. 4 is aside elevation similar "to that of Fig. fsh wing the contourfollowing control means 1 o'sition wherein theblocking means "isi'e- 1ase ;and I Fig, ;is a diagrammatic view indicating how tithevautornatically operated blocking means 'func- .Itions in forming basins around trees. f The construction shown in these drawings comprises primarily a main framework, general- 35 .ly,indicated at 10,, carrying on its forwardypob .tiona. pluralityof angmany disposed "disksfl'z for loosening "the soil and shifting it to a central sri dgee forming position, .a ,pair of transport wheels ,I f l adapted to be ilower ed when theapparatus is being moved to and from working positi-on, a hitch mechanism l5 secured to "the for- "ward end o'f the .framework I 0 for connection to nwyelraft implement, blockers L6 movably con- .mectedxto the rearof 'theframework ltfl and novel automatic means 118 of this invention for autozmatioallyscontrolling the actuation of the blockers ii, the automatic control 1 18 including -,con-- 1 itourefollowin'g means in the-form of -laterally dis- {posed wheelsZO.

nt elevation of the structure 'EIthe framework rm -compri ses angularly Ldisirposed beams 24 to the :undersidesof which are :tiiecuredrmountings 25 -ior the disks l2, the-rear tends of thebeamsl-ilcarrying rearwardly extendwingaparallelbarsizfigthe reartends of which sup- EDDH) the adjacent sides of the respective blocktsrs 16. JExtending rearwardly from .the (forward iends iprovid'exmountings or the outer sides of :the

blockers :Hi, the blockers 16 being in the .formof rotatable =b1ocks 701' iilatesJasiiliustrated. t i t I l V ilheifonwardendsof the beams.Mlareconneoted my means of "a transt ersely idisposed channel iiron W 28 whose {ends are wsuitablyzseoureii, res gby "wlldone, tb thefitbps of beams 124. connected-1mm .the

nected with the top of the hitch bar whereby v the latter is properly retained in position. At an intermediate point of the tongue 29, an upstanding post 34 is welded in position, the brace rods 33 being respectively secured to the outer faces of the post 34. The upper end of the post 34 is positioned by means of a brace bar 35 ex-- tending from the cross beam 28 to an upper end of the post 34. end of the post 34 is a conventional mounting 36 for a conventional internally threaded member 31 which cooperates with a crank handle 38 to adjust the length of a threaded adjusting rod 39 whose rear end is pivoted at 40 to the upper end of an upstanding rock arm 42 secured to a rock shaft 43 whose opopsite ends are pivoted in suitable brackets 44 on the cross beam 28.

The outer ends of the rock arm 43 are fixedly secured to arms 45 pivotally connected .to links 46 for lifting in any conventional manner stub axles 48 of the ground Wheels I4. The stub axles 48 are pivoted at 49 upon the adjacent beams 24 through wheels I4 may be lowered with respect to the framework ID in order to raise the disks I2 for the purpose of transport, the reverse operation taking place when it is desired to raise the transport wheels I4 in order that the disks l2 may penetrate the soil for soil loosening. and shifting purposes. the ground wheels I4 to dispose the disks I2 in operative and in inoperate positions is known in the art, as is the general frame construction I6 and hitch mechanism I5.

The blockers I6 are pivotally mounted between the bars 26 and the side rails 21 as by means of pintles 54 which extend transversely through the middle portions thereof and have their ends secured in the ends of the bars 26 and the side rails 21.

As indicated in the drawings, the blockers I6 are vertically disposed when in operative position, and are held against rotation when moving earth. For this purpose, a stop arm 55 is provided on each end of each blocker I6 in such position that it projects forward from that portion of the blocker which is uppermost, each stop 55 being suitably braced as at 56. The position of the forward end of the operative stop '55 of each blocker is such as to be engaged by a retainer and these are rotatably mounted upon a tie rod 65. These parts are mounted in the frame bars 26 in any preferred or conventional manner. 'For the purpose of manual control of the bell cranks 63 and the retainers 58, cables 66 may be pro- ."vided which extend forward to an operators po- -.sition on a draft vehicle such as a tractor.

- For automatic actuation of thebell crank 63,

Secured in the extreme upper This means for raising 'and lowering 4 each arm 62 is connected by means of a link 68 with an upstanding arm 69 fixedly secured to a rock shaft 19 provided at its outer end with a fixedly secured arm 12 having at its swinging extremity a bearin 13 for the adjacent contourfollowing wheel 20. Each rock shaft 10 is carried in appropriate bearing brackets I4 and 15 on the side rails 21 and beams 24, respectively. The arms 69 and 12, together with the rock shaft 10 to which they are fixedly secured, thus constitute, in each instance, a second bell crank 16. By means of the bell cranks I6 and the connecting links 68,

elevation of the wheels 2|] by travel over an earthen ridge or other substantial earth elevation will cause the respective bell crank 63 to be actuated whereby to withdraw the retainers 58 from engagement with the respective stops 55 and thereby tour-following wheels 20.

Operation In forming earth ridges for irrigation purposes, or otherwise, with the present structure, the apparatus will be drawn by means of anydraft 'implemenhsuch as a tractor, suitably connected with the hitch bar 30 carried at the forward end of the tongue 29 of the hitch mechanism I5. When the apparatus is to be transported to' and from the field or orchard where it is'use'd, the transport wheels I4 will be lowered with respect to the frame Ill through the medium of the crank 36 and adjusting rod 39 so as to elevate the earth working disks I2 and blockers I6 from engagement with the earths surface. When the working location is reached, the crank 38 will be actuatedto raise the transport wheels I4 into inoperative position, as indicated in Fig. 4, so that the disks I2 will penetrate the earth.

In the initial ridging operation, crossridges, such as indicated at 85 in Fig. 5, are first formed throughoutan orchard or portion of an orchard or other territory to be irrigated. During this work, the contour-following wheels 20 may be held elevated, if desired, so that the blockers I6 may assume an inoperative position such as that shown in Fig. 4. For example, the cable 66 may be employed for the purpose of maintaining such elevated position. However, the wheels 29 and blockers I6 may assume operative positions, as indicated in Fig. 2, so that the inward sides of the blockers will aid in ridge formation.

When ridges, such as indicated at 86 in Fig. 5, are being formed transversely of the cross ridges 85, contour-following wheels 20 are lowered into the operative position shown in Fig. 2, in which case the retaining rollers 58 on the arms 60 of the bell crank 63 engage under the adjacent stops 55 and hold the blockers I6 in their vertical positions indicated in Fig. 2. i

As the implement is drawn forward, the earth working'disks I 2, being set at angles as best illustrated in Fig, 1, loosen the earth and cause it to be shifted toward the median line of the apparatus so as to form an earthen ridge in line with the tongue 29 and extending between the paths of the disks l2 and parallel to the bars 28 upon which adjacent sides or the blockers I6 are mounted. Thus, the blockers l5 pass alongside the major portion of the ridge as it is formed. Also, the contour-following wheels 20 travel adjacent the outer sides of the blockers l8 and beyond paths of the earth working disks l2.

When a ridge 88 is being formed and a cross ridge 85 is reached, the disks l2 cut into the cross ridge 85 at the areas 88 of Fig. 5 thereby partially breaking down the previously constructedridge 85 and leaving gaps therein. For the purpose of restoring this damage, bodies 88 of loose earthare being moved forward by the blockers 15. the contour-following wheels 28 reach the undisturbed portions of the cross ridge 85 beyond the paths of the disks l2, they ride up on the tops of the undisturbed portions of the ridge 85 therei by swinging the arms 12 and 69 of the bell cranks l8 and actuating the bell cranks 83 through the medium of the links 68 so that the retaining rollers 58 on the arms 88 of the bell cranks 63 are withdrawn from the stops 55 on the blockers IS, the parts thereupon assuming the position shown in Fig. 4. The result is that earth which was moved forward by the blockers I8 in the path of the disks l2 into the gaps in the cross ridge 85 is released at the time when the gaps have been filled with such earth, whereby to restore the ridge by small earth piles as indicated at 98.

As the apparatus is moved forward toward the next cross ridge 85, the blockers IE will readily swing around until the opposite end of. each contacts the loose earth, whereupon theadjacent stops 55 engage the retaining rollers 58 which have been restored to retaining position by reason of the fact that the contour-following wheels 28 have descended to the main ground level. At the next cross ridge 85 the operation is repeated.

From the foregoing description, it will be apparent that, when cross ridges 85 are broken down and gaps formed therein by the ridging disks l2, earth for filling the gaps is moved into gap filling position by the blockers l6 and is left therein by elevation of the contour-following wheels 20 which release the blockers [6 at the proper moment. It will also be apparent that the sides of the blockers l6 adjacent the ridge 86 being formed will tend to gather earth, accumulated earth in part gradually working into the ridge 85: just formed whereby to fill in gaps that might otherwise have been left in the disking operation. At the same time small ridges 92 of insignificant elevation may be formed from loose earth escaping around the outer edges of the blockers 18.

Thus, with the apparatus of the present invention orchards may be easily ridged, and the cross ridges 85 automatically repaired aslthey are crossed by the apparatus when forming the transverse ridges 86. As a result, individual basins are completed around the respective trees. Where smaller basins are desired, either the present apparatus is used to form two sets of ridges between adjacent rows of trees, or the invention may be applied readily to known apparatus adapted to form two ridges in one operation.

While preferred embodiments of the present When r invention have been shown and described, nevertheless, it is intended to cover all such modifications as fall within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. In combination in earth ridging apparatus: a framework adapted to be moved forward; means carried by a forward portion of said framework adapted to loosen earth; earth moving means movably carried by a rearward portion of said framework and adapted to move to and from earth moving position and to move loosened earth into ridge formation; a retainer to hold said earth moving means in earth moving position; a bell crank comprising an arm swingingly mounted on said framework; a contour follower carried by the swinging end of said arm in a position beyond the path of travel of and substantially in line with said earth moving means and an operative connection between said bell crank and said retainer for releasing said retainer from said earth moving means upon predetermined elevation of said contour follower so that said earth moving means will leave loose earth in said ridge formation.

to move loosened earth into cross ridge forma-- tion; a bell crank secured to said framework and including a retainer; positioning means carried by said earth moving means adapted to engage said retainer for holding said earth moving means in operative position; a second bell crank secured to said framework; an earth contour follower carried by an outer end of one member of said second bell crank and adapted to rise and fall with earth contours; and an operative connection between said bell cranks for moving said retainer from retaining position as said earth contour follower rises.

4. A combination according to claim 3 wherein means is connected with the first mentioned bell crank for manual withdrawal of said retainer from retaining position.

GROVER. C. DEAKINS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 32,997 Hutchinson Aug. 6, 1861 1,503,794 Kruse et al Aug. 5, 1924 1,539,207 Ranker May 26, 1925 1,605,097 Cook Nov. 2, 1926 1,806,389 Dickerson May 19, 1931 1,814,848 Peacock July 14, 1931 2,044,304 James June 16, 1936 

